'I'm selfish'

Yang Jung-doo swims during a 50-meter butterfly heat at the 93th National Sports Festival at Duryu Swimming Pool in this Oct. 12, 2012 file photo. Yang won the gold in the event, shattering Korean records twice. / Yonhap

Incheon Asian Games medalist talks about swimming life

By Nam Hyun-woo

While popular Korean swimming star Park Tae-hwan was creating news at the Incheon Asian Games in October, Yang Jung-doo was also making waves.

Although Yang, 23, is not well-known, he earned a precious bronze at the Asiad. He is the fastest Korean swimmer over short distances, holding Korean records for the 50-meter freestyle (22.48) and butterfly (23.71).

After capping off last season with his first medal at Asiad, he talked with The Korea Times to talk about his life, which has been filled with ups and downs, confessions and gratitude.

Failure in the U.S.

Picking up the sport when he was eight, he distinguished himself in short-distance swimming, appearing in multiple national junior sports festivals. Insiders regarded him as a prodigy who could lead Korea's swimming program.

“When I was in the second year (of middle school), I wasn't sure whether I could do swimming as my job,” Yang said. “However, the (physical education) teacher told my parents they should let me choose what’s best for me, and I thought that was swimming.”

To turn his dream into a reality, he joined a Seoul-based “club team” to get professional training. Young swimmers pay a coach, and the coach borrows a lane to offer lessons.

After joining the team, he collected three golds at the 2006 National Junior Sports Festival and was named MVP.

The following year, he entered Gyeonggi Physical Education High School, a prestigious school for nurturing athletes, and started to improve rapidly. However, he went into an unexpected slump.

“When I was in high school, second year, I did not improve at all,” Yang said. “Then, the coach who taught me at the Seoul club team asked me to come to the U.S. and continue my career there with him.”

Swimmer Yang Jung-doo speaks during an interview with The Korea Times in Samseong-dong, Seoul. / Korea Times photo by Nam Hyun-woo

He was able to do so, thanks to a provincial education office's program that allows sports prodigies to go overseas for better training. Yang jetted off to Irvine, California, when he was 18, and had opportunities to observe top-class swimmers such as Jason Lezak, a four-time Olympic gold medalist from Irvine.

Yang recalled that his 30 months in the U.S. were exotic and fun -- until he realized it was a mistake.

“Although it was an adventurous decision, because it cost a lot, it was a new experience and I also really liked staying in the U.S,” he said. “At the time, everything seemed fine. After graduation, I signed a contract with a professional team and made noticeable progress.

“However, that did not last long. In Korea, I didn't realize that there was no chemistry between him [the coach] and me, because I only saw him during swimming.

“But because I spent most of my days with the coach in the U.S., I realized I did not really like living close to him.”

Yang said the problem grew to affect his training, which resulted in him making little or no progress.

But he was not decisive enough to end his U.S. stint right away. Eventually, after a bitter parting with the coach, who Yang refused to name, he returned to Korea in 2010.

“Of course it was not his fault, but the U.S. failure was a huge minus to my career,” Yang said.

To make things worse, he was dropped from the national team heading to Guangzhou for the 2010 Asian Games. Yang said he was dropped after he was disqualified in the 50-meter freestyle during trials for the Asiad, even though he came in fastest in the 50-meter butterfly.

“I suffered severe depression and had problems in relationships with people,” he said. “The fact that my father has spent the money he saved for life after his retirement for my training in the U.S. also hurt me a lot,” he said.

Failure brought him success

Ironically, Yang said he could become who he is now because of the failure.

“I saw other swimmers have progresses under his coachship,” he said. “I knew that was a childish, but that was the strongest motivation I ever had.”

From that point on, he did whatever he could do to improve, and earned his first golds in the National Sports Festival 50-meter freestyle and butterfly in 2012, shattering the Korean record twice in the butterfly and once in freestyle. The performance led him to represent Korea for the first time in the 2013 Kazan Universiade.

Yang attributed that success to national team coach Kim Min-suk, a 50-meter freestyle gold medalist at the 2002 Busan Asian Games.

Kim, who was Korean record-holder in the 50-meter freestyle for 10 years until Yang broke his mark, reportedly recommended Yang strongly as a national team member in 2012, even though they barely knew each other.

Yang stressed that he and Kim had exceptionally good chemistry.

“Kim told me recently that he told other coaches that he has trust in me,” he said. “I still remember his first remark after I joined the national team: 'You and I are in the same boat. I will give everything to you. If you trust me and follow my instructions, you will have good results after two years.’”

From then on, he started to rise, clocking 22.48 in the 50-meter freestyle to shatter his previous Korean record at the 2013 World Aquatics Championships.

A year later, he bagged a bronze at the Incheon Asian Games. Except for Park Tae-hwan and his relay partners, he was the only Korean medalist in the men's swimming during the Asiad.

At the 95th National Sports Festival shortly after the Asiad, he again broke the Korean record in the 50-meter butterfly with a time of 23.71.

Swimming experts have said Yang has world-class starting skill, but lacks power in the final push. Yang agrees, but said he would not become obsessed with his shortcomings.

“Everyone has their distinctive characteristics,” he said. “I believe the same goes with swimming styles. One's unique style can't be changed in a short time. I am designed to have a quick response and starting skills, so I think it is important to enhance that strength.”

He said this did not mean he neglected training to improve his late-race speed.

Yang described himself as “so selfish” during training. “I do whatever I want for better results, and don't care about the others,” he said. “For example, when I want physical therapy at a certain time, things have to be prepared. I don't care about who reserved the therapist at that time. If there's anything that will have a bearing on my race, I take it out of my life.”

But he said this was because he only focused on the sport and desperately wanted to swim faster.

“I concentrate all efforts on swimming and I will [swim faster],” he said. “Some people ask what drove me to this sport and I say because I love it. There's a feeling when I give a fine performance. The feeling, which I love the most, fascinates me and I believe that's what I am.”

He said he wanted to thank coach Kim, who has understood his tantrums and continued to support him.

This year, Yang plans to continue his international career, competing at the Gwangju Universiade and the 2015 World Aquatics Championships in Russia.

“To aim high, I want to claim gold, or at least finish on the podium, in the Gwangju Universiade,” he said. “And I also want to reap some noticeable results at the world championships. I might be outperformed there, but if I can have good results at Gwangju, similar things will follow in Russia.”

He said he would also work hard to prepare for the 2016 Rio Olympics.